Back in my youth Soho was was the epitome of raunchy, seedy and exciting sex shops. I had never seen anything like it in the UK and I was amazed they were right in the centre of town, sandwiched between the grand shops of Oxford Street and the posh theatres of Shaftesbury Avenue. I also discovered a more prosaic series of sex shops, based around Praed Street in Paddington. Most of these venues have long gone and these photographs, taken in the early 80s, give you some idea of what it was like back then. Also featured are some night photographs demonstrating the excitement of this great city.

Taken on a variety of cameras, including a Contax 139 SLR with flash and a Hasselblad 500CM.